Sunday, October 29, 2017

This photo changes Houdini history

Here's a terrific unpublished photo of Houdini doing a suspended straitjacket escape. This comes from the collection of our great friend and frequent contributor Mark Willoughby. Just sharing this fantastic image is worth a post, but there's more...

This photo instantly raises some questions. First and foremost, what the heck is going on here!? Why is Houdini doing a suspended straitjacket escape in what appears to be a park for what appear to be general passersby (the woman directly below him looks especially surprised to see him). A practice session maybe? For years, this was my best guess.

But now I've finally discovered the answer, and it actually rewrites some Houdini history. So check out WILD ABOUT HARRY on Tuesday (Halloween!) when I will pull back the veil on this curious tale.